Photo-printing apparatus with simultaneous control of projection exposure unit and digital exposure unit

Abstract

A photo-printing apparatus is provided which includes a projection exposure device for projection-exposing an image formed on a film, digital exposure device for exposing a digital image, a reader for reading print size data and image data of one roll of film, and a controller for calculating a digital exposure position on the basis of the print size data and image data read by the reader and conveying a photosensitive material to the digital exposure position, whereby a series of printing operations of the projection exposure device is achieved in parallel with a series of digital printing operations of the digital exposure device.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A photo-printing apparatus comprising: projection exposure means for projection-exposing an image formed on a film,   digital exposure means for exposing a digital image,   reader means for reading print size data and image data of one roll of film, and   control means for calculating a digital exposure position on the basis of the print size data and image data read by the reader means, for conveying a first part of a continuous photosensitive material to a projection exposure position and a second part of the continuous photosensitive material to a digital exposure position, and for controlling printing operations of the projection exposure means to the first part of the continuous photosensitive material at the projection exposure position simultaneously with controlling printing operations of the digital exposure means to the second part of the continuous photosensitive material at the digital exposure position.   
     
     
       2. The photo-printing apparatus of claim 1, further comprising conveyor means for partially sagging the continuous photosensitive material to stock the continuous photosensitive material, said conveyor means being disposed between said projection exposure means and said digital exposure means, and wherein said control means controls said conveyor means, said projection exposure means and said digital exposure means to convey said continuous photosensitive material and projection-expose simultaneously with digital exposure. 
     
     
       3. The photo-printing apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein said digital exposure means exposes a digital image of an index print by digital exposure based on said image data of the one roll of film read by the reader means, and wherein said control means controls the conveyance of the continuous photosensitive material so that the second part of the continuous photosensitive material is made continuous with one end of a series of projection-exposed prints of said one roll of film. 
     
     
       4. The photo-printing apparatus of claim 2, wherein said conveyor means, controlled by said control means, partially sags the continuous photosensitive material in an amount of equal to the amount of photosensitive material necessary to expose n images on separate areas of the continuous photosensitive material, where n is an integer, and wherein said digital exposure means exposes an index print of the n images. 
     
     
       5. The photo-printing apparatus of claim 4, wherein said conveyor means partially sags the continuous photosensitive material in an amount necessary to expose all frames of the film, wherein n equals the number of frames of the film. 
     
     
       6. A photo-printing apparatus comprising: projection exposure means for projection-exposing an image formed on a film,   digital exposure means for exposing a digital image,   reader means for reading print size data and image data of one roll of film, and   control means for calculating a digital exposure position on the basis of the print size data and image data read by the reader means, for conveying a first part of a continuous photosensitive material to a projection exposure position and a second part of the continuous photosensitive material to a digital exposure position, and for controlling said projection exposure means to expose the first part of the continuous photosensitive material at the projection exposure position simultaneously with controlling said digital exposure means to expose the second part of the continuous photosensitive material at the digital exposure position.